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Senate Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
Senate of Pennsylvania
Session of 2017 - 2018
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | January 13, 2017 02:58 PM |
|---|---|
| From: | Senator Ryan P. Aument |
| To: | All Senate members |
| Subject: | Basic Education Continuation Funding |
| I am writing to invite you to cosponsor legislation I will be reintroducing in the near future that will provide for the payment of the basic education subsidy to school districts in cases when the appropriation is not enacted by August 15th of any fiscal year. My legislation will appropriate funding on the payment schedule provided in the Public School Code at the previous year’s amount until such time when an appropriation is enacted. If revenue estimates for the current year are less than the actual revenue from the previous year, the funding would be reduced on a pro rata basis. While there will likely be a robust debate on the appropriate level of education funding, one outcome is entirely unacceptable: that our public schools receive no state funding in the event of a budget impasse. This legislation would ensure that our schools receive the funding necessary to continue to operate without interruption or having to borrow money to keep their doors open. It removes schools from being put in the untenable position of being a political pawn and it continues to fulfill the General Assembly’s obligation under Article III, Section 14 of the Constitution of Pennsylvania, which states that, “The General Assembly shall provide for the maintenance and support of a thorough and efficient system of public education to serve the needs of the Commonwealth.” This proposal was introduced as Senate Bill 807 of the 2015-2016 session and was co-sponsored by: Scarnati, Greenleaf, Tomlinson, White, Gordner, Ward, Teplitz, Vulakovich, Mensch, Bartolotta, Hutchinson, Alloway, and Vogel. Please join me in supporting this commonsense measure that ensures our schools continue to operate in the unfortunate event that there is no appropriation for basic education timely enacted. |
Introduced as SB525